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Improving the quality of the air we breathe

UWE Bristol research findings on the management of air
quality have informed policy, official guidance and practice at the
UK
Government level, as well as in its devolved nations and regions.
The findings have also directly influenced policy in the
EU, South
Africa and Nigeria.

Understanding the problem, identifying solutions

Some 30,000 deaths in the UK every year are linked to air pollution, costing
society around £20 billion. Local councils and citizens need to
understand the risks it poses and how best to manage it. Providing
the evidence for this has been the mission of UWE Bristol’s
Air Quality
Management Resource Centre, founded in 1996.

Back in 1997, when the UK’s first National Air Quality Strategy was laid
out, it was expected that only a handful of locations in major
cities would exceed the health-based objectives for maximum
pollution levels. Wherever that happens, local authorities are
required to declare them ‘Air Quality Management Areas’.

The shock came a decade later, when UWE Bristol research
showed that, far from there being only isolated cases, 60% of local
authorities had declared these areas of air-quality concern. This
was much worse than expected. A new spatial pattern – a ‘new
geography’ – of air pollution in the UK was laid bare for the
first time.

Right from 1996 to the present, Longhurst’s team has scrutinised
the processes used to manage local air quality. They have analysed
air quality data both from computer models and direct measurements.
They have looked at policy, transport planning, public exposure,
air quality and carbon management processes within local
authorities. They have also considered stakeholder engagement and
the behaviours and attitudes of the public.

All of this has led to an unparalleled understanding of the
complex interplay between air quality management activities at
local and national levels. The research has identified what
national government needs to do to best support local authorities
and agencies, especially given the unexpected magnitude of the
problem.

Influencing policy and practice around the UK

These insights have enabled the UWE Bristol research team
to advise UK
Government department
Defra in its development of policy and guidance.

The research has also been central in informing the local air
quality management policies of the devolved administrations in
Scotland and Wales, as well as the Greater London Authority and the
Department of the Environment in
Northern Ireland. The UWE Bristol team advised them both
on setting their own policies, and on implementing policy set at
the UK
level. The resulting guidance documents were published in 2009 and
are still in force in 2014.

The UWE Bristol team trained practitioners and policy
makers in local authorities and the devolved administrations. It
gave case-by-case advice, and also provided an online and phone
helpdesk.

By tackling poor air quality, UWE Bristol research has
contributed directly to improving the quality of life of people in
towns and cities around the UK.

Influencing UK national policy

In 2010, the UK Government instigated a review of the overall
local air quality management process. Its remit was both how to
improve air quality itself, and also how to make best use of
resources in doing so. Its conclusions reflected UWE
Bristol research findings over the previous decade.

In particular, it took forward the finding that there was
considerable mismatch between the roles of central and local
government. It endorsed authorities that had collaborated with
other organisations and across departments, as identified by UWE
Bristol research, in ways that could work better and reduce
costs.

The review also reaffirmed UWE Bristol findings by
recommending that the
Department for Transport develop a more concerted plan for its
contribution to improving air quality. In line with UWE
Bristol research, it recommended that climate change and air
quality policies be more closely aligned, especially at the local
level.

The review’s recommendations, echoing the findings of Longhurst
and colleagues, have directly influenced policy and practice in
central and local government – a continuing influence in further
changes are even now coming into effect.

Influencing EU policy

UWE Bristol research has also made a direct input into
policy at the EU level. In December 2013 the European
Commission’s DG Environment announced a new air quality
policy package. This had been informed by research commissioned
from UWE Bristol as part of a consortium. The contribution
from UWE Bristol focused particularly on ozone pollution and
the likely effects of scenarios for possible future policies.

International influence

UWE Bristol’s air quality research has also proved influential
around the world.

In 2007 the team became part of a multinational consultancy to
develop a new National Framework for Air Quality Management in
South Africa, bringing their insights and experience of similar
regulatory change in the UK. Since then, South Africa has seen an improving
trend in ambient air quality – guided by the standards set out in
the Framework.

Longhurst’s group has also conducted research on air quality in
the Niger Delta, influencing practice in Nigeria. Following a
research collaboration with the UWE Bristol team, the Nigerian
National Space Research and Development Agency now has a policy
priority to develop satellite sensors to monitor concentrations of
pollutants and carbon dioxide. Since February 2013, it now also
assesses its existing satellite sensors using the methodology from
this research.

UWE Bristol research has directly influenced policy and
practice in the management of air quality in the UK, EU, South Africa and
Nigeria, with consequent benefits to people living in all of these
places.